Before you start

A residence, student or work permit application in progress — the permit unlocks SGK and a health-system ID
A Yabancı Kimlik Numarası (YKN), issued with the permit — needed for e-Devlet, appointments and e-Nabız
A Turkish address and phone number for insurer paperwork, e-Devlet SMS and hospital registration
Funds for a private policy before your first permit appointment — no policy means no permit

Step-by-step

1
Buy private health insurance (required for your first permit)
Every first-year resident must show a valid private policy at the residence-permit appointment; SGK does not count for the initial permit and it will not be issued or renewed without one. Since April 2025 the policy must meet raised minimums and must state explicitly that it is valid for residence-permit applications. Buy a 'yabancı ikamet' compliant plan from a Turkish insurer (Allianz, Axa, Anadolu, Aksigorta) online or through a broker. Antalya has a dense broker market precisely because so many residents need this — but read the policy, not the broker's summary.
OnlineWho: You (or a broker / relocation agent)Same day to one day~US$150-250/year for a basic compliant policy; substantially more with age
2
Work out your SGK eligibility
If a Turkish company employs you on a work permit, your employer enrols you in SGK from your first working day with no waiting period, covering a spouse and children under 18. The self-employed pay in through Bağ-Kur. If you are not employed, you can only opt into SGK voluntarily after one continuous year on a residence permit — the rule that catches Antalya's retirees hardest, because it lands exactly when private premiums are highest.
Via employerWho: Your employer's HR for employees; you, for voluntary or Bağ-Kur enrolmentImmediate for employees; eligibility opens after 12 months' residence otherwise
3
Register on e-Devlet, then learn the three-tier map
With your YKN you can use e-Devlet, book public appointments through the Ministry of Health's MHRS system (mhrs.gov.tr, the app, or ALO 182) and read your records on e-Nabız. In practice Antalya routes like this: family health centres (aile sağlığı merkezi) and district state hospitals for routine care; Akdeniz Üniversitesi Hastanesi or Antalya Şehir Hastanesi for anything complex; and a private hospital when you want an appointment this week in a language you speak.
Mobile appWho: YouRegistration minutes; public appointment lead times vary from days to weeksPublic: free or nominal with SGK · Private specialist visit ~US$30-120 self-pay
4
Know emergencies (112), pharmacies and the summer profile
Dial 112 for an ambulance; emergency care (acil) at state hospitals is provided to everyone regardless of insurance or status. Pharmacies (eczane) are everywhere, pharmacists advise on minor ailments, and many medicines are cheap and over the counter — a foreign prescription is not legally valid, though a Turkish doctor's is inexpensive. Outside hours a rotating nöbetçi eczane is always open. Antalya's seasonal additions are heat illness and dehydration from June to September, jellyfish along the coast, road trauma on the D400, and wildfire smoke in bad summers.
In personWho: YouImmediate112 emergency care free · many common medicines a few dollars
5
Optional: use the medical-tourism sector as a resident
The dental and elective-surgery clinics built for inbound patients will happily treat residents, usually at a published package price, with English- and Russian-speaking staff and short waits. It is the fastest route to a scan, a dental crown or a specialist opinion in the city. Treat it as a real option and not a tourist trap — but check the clinic's Ministry of Health licensing, get the treatment plan in writing, and understand that a package price rarely includes complications.
In personWho: YouDays, not monthsPublished package prices; typically a fraction of Western equivalents

Documents you’ll need

Passport and residence/student/work permit (or in-progress application)
Yabancı Kimlik Numarası (foreigner ID number)
Private policy marked 'valid for residence-permit applications' (for the permit itself)
Proof of Turkish address and a Turkish mobile number, for e-Devlet/SGK and hospital registration

Things most newcomers don’t know

The one-year SGK wait is the single most expensive surprise for people retiring to this coast.

A large share of Antalya's foreign residents arrive without a Turkish employer, assume a residence permit brings them into the public system, and discover they must fund a full year of private cover first — at an age when private premiums are highest and pre-existing conditions bite. Budget the first year at the age-loaded rate rather than the headline figure, and get quotes before you commit to the move.

Source: SGK voluntary-insurance eligibility rules; residence-permit insurance requirement

Antalya's medical-tourism industry is a resident's asset, not just a marketing category.

The city has private capacity and multilingual staff built for people flying in for treatment, which means a resident can usually get a scan, a dental appointment or a specialist opinion within days at a published price. In most second cities the private sector is thinner than the public one; here it is the other way round.

Source: Antalya private-sector health and dental provision, 2026

Akdeniz Üniversitesi's hospital means the whole Mediterranean coast is referred here, not to Ankara.

It is the regional tertiary referral centre for the Antalya region, with the Ministry of Health's city hospital alongside it. For a city outside the big three that is unusual — it means complex care generally stays local rather than becoming a 500 km transfer.

Source: Akdeniz Üniversitesi Hastanesi; Antalya Şehir Hastanesi (T.C. Sağlık Bakanlığı)

A foreign prescription is not legally valid, but a Turkish one is cheap — see a doctor rather than importing medicine.

Pharmacies cannot dispense against a prescription written abroad. Newcomers try to stock up before flying or have medicine posted, which is both unreliable and sometimes a customs problem. A private GP consultation costs less than the shipping usually does, and gets you a valid, refillable Turkish prescription.

Source: Turkish pharmacy practice; Sağlık Bakanlığı

Common mistakes to avoid

Buying a cheap policy that isn't marked 'valid for residence-permit applications' or misses the April-2025 minimums.
Retiring to the coast and budgeting for SGK from month one — voluntary entry only opens after a full year of residence.
Letting the private policy lapse before a renewal, which can block the renewal on its own.
Underestimating summer heat: dehydration and heat illness are the commonest reason residents meet the acil department here.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.